Friday, March 31, 2017

The mayor of Bigastro, María Teresa Belmonte, and the town councilor, Antonio José Meseguer, have now signed off the works that have been carried out in the last three months.The project was part of the program of Financially Sustainable Investments for which the Provincial Council provided an investment of 120,000 euros.

In Barrio Nuevo, the sewage has been extended to facilitate the collection of rainwater.

The stage in the Park Huerto del Cura has been rehabilitated with a new roof and a gate to prevent accidents.

Other works include the roundabout at the health centre which now has lighting to increase road safety in this section of the municipality. The councilman of Urbanism, Antonio Meseguer, has says that the project was realised "after doing a complete check-up of all the town centre". Following this analysis, the streets Aljíbe, Antonio Maura, Francisco Payá, Antonio Machado, Francisco de Asís and Poet Carlos Hidalgo have been redeveloped.

Sunday, March 26, 2017

Last night, Bigastro celebrated the lives of women in the town at the 12th Gala de la Mujer.

All but one of the women, who were presented with a glass plaque and a bunch of flowers, were of a mature age. Nether the less, they all looked smart and were interesting to listen to. In fact some of them were natural comedians and had the audience in pleats of laughter.

Bigastro Town Hall has managed to recover the state and image of the recreational area of ​​La Pedrera, one of the most visited natural sites in the Vega Baja region. Thanks to a grant from the Environment Department of the Provincial Council, new services have been installed, after carrying out necessary maintenance work. This is the first step to create an environmental route that unites the mountain of the municipality and the traditional orchard.

The rehabilitation has been carried out in recent months and has consisted of three different stages: the improvement of the pergola and shade, the children's play area as well as the barbecues and public toilets. In total, the project budget has meant an investment of more than 60,000 euros.

The pergola has received various treatments of varnishes and they have replaced the damaged wood. It should be remembered that this recreational area has hardly received any work on it since it opened in the nineties. For that reason, the pillars and beams that support the wooden structures have been reinforced, as well as the new walkways that have been created. The rails have also been reinforced and the most damaged ones have been replaced.

With regard to the children's play area, the old children's games have been removed because they do not comply with safety regulations. The City Council will be installing new games in order to expand the leisure area for the youngest.

Another necessary action was the replacement of the toilets that had remained in disuse because of the damage. They have also been adapted for people with disabilities. The company awarded the work has carried out an extensive cleaning of the graffiti in the recreation area and has completely reformed the barbecues, which now have fireproof materials and security systems to prevent sparks from burning. These improvements have been made to adapt the barbecues to the current regulations on fire protection.

With all this, La Pedera is now ready to receive the large group of visitors that visit throughout the year including school groups organised by educational centres throughout the Alicante province and the neighbouring Region of Murcia. This recreational area has an enviable location and it is one of the few spaces in the region with picnic tables for outdoor activities.

The Civil Guard of Dolores arrested a couple who had a plantation of marijuana in the garage of their house with a sophisticated system of irrigation, ventilation and lighting.

When the police arrived at the house in Catral, they could smell the marijuana from the street. Insside the garage they found 104 large plants. They also found two sawn off shotguns, one of which was already loaded along with a crossbow with two lead tipped arrows.

The couple, a 35-year-old Irishman and a 28-year-old Briton, were charged with a crime against the public health. In addition,they were charged with the illicit possession of weapons.

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

That was a lot of rain yesterday. In Alicante they had 150 litres per square metre; flooding garages, streets and avenues. I don't think we had anywhere near that amount but still my pool is full to the brim.

We were also lucky not to suffer from the gale force winds that caused a lot of damage on the coast.

Monday, March 13, 2017

Taking on two new works must have presented a great challenge to the band.

First, Ravel's Bolero which features a number of solo pieces -an opportunity for those musicians involved to demonstrate how good they are.

This was followed by The Gods of Olympus by Óscar Navarro Rojo - a monumental piece in ten parts. At times this was demanding both of the band and the listener with complex sections that involved a variety of novel instruments.

You can find my album of photos in the sidebar and if you care to listen to the concert, it is downloadable at

Thursday, March 09, 2017

There must be many occasions when diners leave a restaurant without paying the bill. It is probably easiest when the place is full and the waiters are distracted by the number of covers they have to serve. However, I have never heard of this happening with large groups before now.

This is a new scam being practised by Eastern Europeans in the north of the country.

They arrange for an event to take place at a restaurant. The incidents so far have been a wedding and a christening. After the meal is finished, the guests scarper without paying the bill. It is believed that the scam must premeditated because of the way the guests just up and go without notice.

The first reported incident was at the El Carmen restaurant in Bembibre where 120 diners left without paying the 2,000 Euro bill for a christening. The owner went into the kitchen for the cake only to return and find the room empty. All he was left with was a 900 Euro deposit.

A few days later, 200 wedding guests left El Rincón de Pepín in Ponferrada without paying the 10,000 Euro bill. The party was in full swing when the guests all got up and headed for the door at the same time. There was nothing the owner could do to stop them.

After our trip to England to celebrate our granddaughter's 7th birthday, it was good to come back to warm weather. We only had one day when it rained all the time and there were some spells of sunshine for us to enjoy. Still damn cold though!

Wednesday, March 01, 2017

Musical Union of Bigastro Symphonic Band will be playing their annual "EL CONCIERTO DEL SOCIO" next Sunday, March 12th at 18:30 pm in the Municipal Auditorium Francisco Grau.

The concert will feature "The Olympus of the Gods" by Oscar Navarro.

Summary

“The Gods’ Olympus” is a symphonic suite divided in ten movements, each one of them representing one of the twelve deities in Olympus.

The suite begins with a strong “thunder” sound, which represents the power and strength of the great God Zeus, Father of Gods. This “thunder” sound will be the connecting thread between movements, and it will be heard each time that Zeus introduces a different God in Olympus.

I. “Hermes” – The messenger of the Gods across all frontiers
A very lively and fast music represents an agile and energetic God, very cunning. He is capable to travel around Earth from place to place without any trouble, disguising himself amongst other travellers, shepherds, traders, burglars and other mortals without raising any suspicion.

II. “Artemis” – The Goddess of nature and wild animals
This movement, composed as a dance form, describes the Goddess Artemis surrounded by live nature, birds and vegetation covering the surface of Earth beyond where the eye reaches. The animals pasture and run around freely amidst a clear and bright sky. Artemis dances and runs in this beautiful depicted scenery, carrying her bow and arrows and hunting down the wild animals.

III. “Hades” – God of the Death
A trip to the underworld can be very lonely and dark. A cold and deserted path will guide us to meet Hades, who is depicted in the music by a demonic ostinato, which will drive our ear crazy until it rips our soul apart.

IV. “Poseidon” – God of the Sea and the Earthquakes
We find ourselves in a peaceful and quiet sea where a soft breeze carries us, little by little, deeper into the ocean. There, a hunting horn is used to call Poseidon to reveal himself. The sea will become more and more unstable and rocky, and the waves will crush against the cliffs with more and more power, causing many rocks to fall into the water. Another hunting call will bring Poseidon from the deep ocean and into the surface, extremely infuriated. After showing himself fully, he will return into the deepest of the ocean, creating a magnificent wave that will slowly dissipate. In the end, the ocean recovers its normal peaceful state.

V. “Demeter” – Goddess of Agriculture
This movement reproduces the “chant of the mowers”, often related to the world of agriculture. It uses a simple melody created exclusively for Demeter, who takes care of the farmers and the fertile land. The movement of the butterflies wings and the dialogue between the wind and the farmers will be a predominant feature of this movement. In essence, it is a movement on invocation to the Goddess of agriculture and carrier of the seasons.

VI. “Hephaestus” – God of fire and forging
This movement can be coined as “the smith’s hymn”. Hephaestus is venerated by all the smiths and craftsmen, who chant melodies to the beat of the anvils. Little by little, other sculptors and craftsmen will join in with their voices. At the very end, a big explosion of fire and ecstasy will carry the listener to the end of the movement.

VII. “Apollo” – God of beauty, music and perfection
Apollo, who is in charge of playing music at Olympus, will present us with a simple theme, first played with the horn and later by a small group of players from each one of the orchestra’s sections. This theme will be used as a welcome back tune for all of the Gods. It is very triumphant and solemn chamber music.

VIII. “Aphrodite” – Goddess of sexuality, lust and desire
Aphrodite, portrayed by the harp, is shown as a very appealing and sensual Goddess. She will hypnotise us little by little, using very colourful and enchanting melodies. We will fall under her arms, and with another theme in a waltz form, she will make our mind wonder into infinity.

IX. “Ares & Athena” – Gods of War
Ares and Athena travel together riding on their chariot pushed by four immortal bulls with golden flanges and breathing fire. They are equipped with helmets, shields and spears. These Gods are coming from afar, marching towards war and destruction, a ferocious massacre of blood and fire.

X. “Zeus y Hera” – God and Goddess of Gods
At the end of this suite Zeus y Hera will appear to the beat of the great “Zeus and Hera’s March”. They both parade together in their throne, transported by heavy wheels of stone. Acclaimed by all of the other Gods, they enter in Olympus, welcomed by fanfares of timpani and trumpets. They are Olympus Kings!